Vehicle air conditioner

ABSTRACT

An air-outlet mode selecting device includes first and second rotary doors. Each of the first and second rotary doors has rotary shafts separated from each other in an axial direction of the rotary shafts, an outer peripheral door surface that is provided at a position separated radial outward from the center line of the rotary shafts and is turned with the rotary shafts, and left and right side plates for connecting both ends in the axial direction of the outer peripheral surface and the rotary shafts. One of the first and second rotary doors opens and closes a specified opening among three openings and other rotary door opens and closes the remaining two openings among the three openings. Accordingly, door operation force and air flow resistance can be effectively reduced, and the size of the air-outlet mode selecting device can be effectively reduced.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No.2002-321267 filed on Nov. 5, 2002, the disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditionerincluding an air-outlet mode selecting device for opening and closingair outlet openings. The air-outlet mode selecting device includes tworotary doors each of which has an outer peripheral door surface turningwith a rotary shaft.

[0004] 2. Related Art

[0005] An air-outlet mode selecting mechanism for opening and closingair outlet openings in an air conditioner for a vehicle is broadlydivided into the following three types of air-outlet mode selectingdevices. The first type of air-outlet mode selecting device, as shown inFIG. 22, opens and closes a defroster opening 20, a face opening 21 anda foot opening 22 by the use of a face/defroster selector door 110 madeof a cantilever plate door and a foot door 100 made of a cantileverplate door. Here, the plate-shaped foot door 100 is provided with arotary shaft 100 a at one end thereof and is turned around the rotaryshaft 100 a. Similarly, the plate-shaped face/defroster selector door110 is provided with a rotary shaft 110 a at one end thereof and isturned around the rotary shaft 110 a.

[0006] The second type of air-outlet mode selecting device, as shown inFIG. 23, opens and closes the defroster opening 20, the face opening 21and the foot opening 22 by the use of a foot door 100, a face door 110and a defroster door 120 each of which is made of a butterfly door.Here, the butterfly door 100 is provided with a rotary shaft 100 a atthe center thereof and is turned around the rotary shaft 100 a.Similarly, the butterfly door 110 is provided with a rotary shaft 110 aat the center thereof and is turned around the rotary shaft 110 a, andthe butterfly door 120 is provided with a rotary shaft 120 a at thecenter thereof and is turned around the rotary shaft 120 a.

[0007] The third type of air-outlet mode selecting device opens andcloses the face opening 21, the defroster opening 20 and the footopening 22 by the use of a single rotary door having an outer peripheraldoor surface turning with a rotary shaft. Further, the outer peripheraldoor surface turning with the rotary shaft is arranged at a positionseparated by a predetermined distance outward in the radial directionfrom the center of the rotary shaft. This outer peripheral door surfaceis usually shaped like an arc having its center at the rotary shaft.

[0008] In the first type of air-outlet mode selecting device, thedefroster/face selector door 110 and the foot door 100 are respectivelyconstructed of the cantilever plate doors, so the doors 100, 110 need tobe operated against the pressure of blowing air applied to the wholesurface of the plate door. Further, there are cases where the doors 100,110 need to be operated against their self-weights. As described above,because the doors 100, 110 need to be operated against the pressure ofblowing air and the self-weight, the first type of air-outlet modeselecting device presents a problem that a door operating force becomeslarge.

[0009] In the second type of air-outlet mode selecting device, the threedoors 100 to 120 are constructed of the butterfly doors. The butterflydoor has the rotary shaft at the center of the door plate, so the forceapplied to one side of the door plate by the air pressure and theself-weight is opposite to the force applied to the other side of thedoor plate by the air pressure and the self-weight. Therefore, thesecond type of air-outlet mode selecting device has an advantage ofcanceling effects of the air pressure and the self-weight, therebyreducing the door operating force as compared with the first type ofair-outlet mode selecting device. However, when the butterfly door isused, the door plate is located near the center of the air passage ofthe respective openings when the respective openings are fully opened(see door 110 in FIG. 23). Due to this construction, an air flowresistance increases, air blowing volume is reduced, and air blowingnoises (whizzing noises) increase when the respective openings are fullyopened. Then, in a case where the butterfly door is located directlybehind an air mixing portion in which cold air and hot air are mixedwith each other, there is a phenomenon in which the cold air and the hotair from the air mixing portion flow separately on the front surfaceside and the rear surface side of the door plate of the butterfly door.This presents a problem of increasing variations in the temperature ofair to be blown into a passenger compartment.

[0010] According to the third type of air-outlet mode selecting device,the face opening 21, the defroster opening 20 and the foot opening 22can be opened and closed by the single rotary door, so the third type ofair-outlet mode selecting device has an advantage of reducing the numberof doors and simplify a link mechanism for operating the doors ascompared with the first and second types of air-outlet mode selectingdevices. However, the third type of air-outlet mode selecting device,for the following reasons, deteriorates the mounting performance in avehicle. That is, in the third type of air-outlet mode selecting device,all of the face opening, the defroster opening and the foot opening needto be arranged in an arc shape along the turning path of the outerperipheral door surface of the rotary door. On the other hand, the airconditioning unit is arranged in a place that is inside the instrumentpanel (i.e., dashboard) of the vehicle and is subjected to extremespatial constraint. Thus, it is difficult to perform the arrangement ofthree air outlet openings of the face opening, the defroster opening andthe foot opening in the shape of an arc.

[0011] Further, in order to ensure the respective air volumes blown offfrom the three air outlet openings, the areas of the respective airoutlet openings need to be enlarged and hence the area of the outerperipheral door surface of the rotary door needs to be enlarged. As aresult, the rotary door is increased in size, and the mountingperformance of the air conditioning unit in the vehicle is furtherdeteriorated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0012] In view of the above-described problems, it is an object of thepresent invention to provide an air-outlet mode selecting device of anair conditioner for a vehicle, which can reduce a door operating forceand an air flow resistance, and can improve mounting performance of theair conditioner in the vehicle.

[0013] According to an aspect of the present invention, in an airconditioner for a vehicle, a heat exchanger for performing a heatexchange with air is disposed in a case for defining an air passagethrough which air flows into a passenger compartment. The case isprovided with a defroster opening through which air flows toward aninner surface of a front windshield of the vehicle, a face openingthrough which air flows toward an upper side of the passengercompartment, and a foot opening through which air flows toward a lowerside of the passenger compartment, at positions downstream from the heatexchanger. Further, the air conditioner is provided with an air-outletmode selecting device for opening and closing the defroster opening, theface opening and the foot opening. In addition, the mode selectingdevice includes first and second rotary doors, and each of the first andsecond rotary doors includes a rotation shaft, an outer peripheral doorsurface separated from a center axial line of the rotation shaft to aradial outside by a predetermined dimension, and two side platesconnected to the rotation shaft and end portions of the outer peripheraldoor surface in an axial direction of the rotation shaft. In the airconditioner, one of the first and second rotary doors is disposed toopen and close one of the defroster opening, the face opening and thefoot opening, and the other one of the first and second rotary doors isdisposed to open and close the other two of the defroster opening, theface opening and the foot opening.

[0014] In each of the first and second rotary doors, the outerperipheral door surface is rotated around the rotation shaft in adirection perpendicular to an air flow direction. Accordingly, dooroperation force of the mode selecting device can be effectively reduced,and the size of the mode selecting device can be effectively reduced.Further, because each rotary door does not partition a hot air flow anda cool air flow, a temperature difference of air blown into each openingcan be reduced. In addition, because both of the rotary doors arearranged to open and close the three openings, one of the three openingscan be arbitrarily arranged relative to the other two of the threeopenings. Thus, the size of the mode selecting device constructed withthe first and second doors can be effectively reduced, and mountingperformance of the air conditioner using the mode selecting device canbe improved.

[0015] Preferably, each of the first and second rotary doors is formedinto a gate shape by the outer peripheral door surface and the two sideplates to have an inner space of the gate shape through which air afterpassing through the heat exchanger flows. Further, the defrosteropening, the face opening and the foot opening are arranged outside ofthe gate shapes of the first and second rotary doors, and each of thefirst and second rotary doors is provided with a seal portion onperipheral end portions of the outer peripheral door surface and the twoside plates. In addition, the case has seal surfaces each of which isprovided around each of the openings, and the seal portion of the rotarydoor press-contacts the seal surface of the case so that a communicationbetween the inner space of the gate shape and each of the openings isshut. Therefore, a gate shape space can be constructed with the outerperipheral door surface and the two side plates in each of the first andsecond rotary doors.

[0016] More preferably, the heat exchanger includes a heating heatexchanger for heating air, and the heating heat exchanger is disposed inthe case to form a hot air passage through which air passes the heatingheat exchanger and a cold air passage through which air bypasses theheating heat exchanger. In this case, even when the foot opening isprovided to be near the cold air passage than the hot air passage,because the air passage of the case is provided with a hot air bypasspassage through which air in the hot air passage is branched into rightand left sides of the cold air passage and is introduced into the footopening. Therefore, a comfortable up and down temperature distributionof air to be blown into the passenger compartment can be provided.

[0017] According to another aspect of the present invention, the firstrotary door is disposed to open and close the foot opening, and thesecond rotary door is disposed to open and close the defroster openingand the face opening. Further, the face opening is partitioned into acenter face opening portion through which air is blown toward a centerupper side of the passenger compartment in a width direction of thevehicle, and a side face opening portion through which air is blowntoward a side upper side of the passenger compartment in the widthdirection. In the air conditioner, the second rotary door is disposed tomaintain an open state of the side face opening portion even whileclosing the center face opening portion. Therefore, it is possible toalways introduce air into the side face opening portion. Accordingly,air-conditioning feeling given to a passenger adjacent to a sidewindshield can be improved, and defogging performance of the sidewindshield can be improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Other objects, features and advantages of the present inventionwill become more apparent from the following detailed description madewith reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0019]FIG. 1 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of an airconditioning unit in a face mode, in accordance with a first embodimentof the present invention;

[0020]FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a rotary door structure inthe first embodiment;

[0021]FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line III-III in FIG.1, showing a hot air bypass passage;

[0022]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part in FIG. 1, ina bi-level mode;

[0023]FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part in FIG. 1, ina foot mode;

[0024]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part in FIG. 1, ina foot/defroster mode;

[0025]FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part in FIG. 1, ina defroster mode;

[0026]FIG. 8 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of an airconditioning unit in a foot mode, in accordance with a second embodimentof the present invention;

[0027]FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line IX-IX in FIG.8, showing a structure in which two rotary doors are stacked;

[0028]FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of an airconditioning unit in accordance with a third embodiment of the presentinvention;

[0029]FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of an airconditioning unit in accordance with a fourth embodiment of the presentinvention;

[0030]FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of an airconditioning unit in accordance with a fifth embodiment of the presentinvention;

[0031]FIG. 13 is a top plan view of a left half portion of the airconditioning unit in accordance with the fifth embodiment;

[0032]FIGS. 14A, 14B, 14C are a partial perspective view, a partial topplan view, and a cross-sectional view of the structure of the secondrotary door in accordance with the fifth embodiment, respectively;

[0033]FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of an airconditioning unit in a foot mode in a state where air does not blow offfrom the defroster opening, in accordance with a sixth embodiment of thepresent invention;

[0034]FIG. 16 is a top plan view of a left half portion of the airconditioning unit in accordance with the sixth embodiment, when the footmode is set in a state where air does not blow off from the defrosteropening;

[0035]FIGS. 17A, 17B, 17C are a partial perspective view, a partial topplan view, and a cross-sectional view of the structure of a secondrotary door, in accordance with the sixth embodiment, respectively;

[0036]FIG. 18 is a top plan view of a left half portion of the airconditioning unit in accordance with the sixth embodiment and shows astate where the second rotary door is dismounted;

[0037]FIG. 19 is a top plan view of the left half portion of the airconditioning unit in accordance with the sixth embodiment and shows aposition relationship between the seal part of the second rotary doorand a case side seal surface provided in a case;

[0038]FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the sixthembodiment and shows a foot mode in a state where air blows off by asmall amount from a defroster opening;

[0039]FIG. 21 is a top plan view of the left half portion of the airconditioning unit in accordance with the sixth embodiment and shows afoot mode in a state where air blows off by a small amount from thedefroster opening;

[0040]FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of an airconditioning unit of the related art; and

[0041]FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of anotherair conditioning unit of the related art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment

[0042] The first embodiment of the present invention will be nowdescribed with reference to FIGS. 1-7.

[0043] An air conditioning unit 10 shown in FIG. 1 is arranged nearly atthe center in the width direction (right-left direction) of a vehicleinside an instrument panel (i.e., dashboard) at the front in a passengercompartment. The interior unit of an air conditioner for a vehicle isbroadly divided into the above-described air conditioning unit 10arranged nearly at the center and a blower unit (not shown) arranged ina position offset to a front passenger's seat in the width directionfrom the center inside the instrument panel.

[0044] The blower unit has an inside/outside air switching box forselectively introducing outside air (i.e., air outside the passengercompartment) and inside air (i.e., air inside the passengercompartment), and a centrifugal blower for blowing air introduced intothis inside/outside air switching box. The air blown by this blower unitflows into a lowermost air inflow space 12 in a case 11 of the airconditioning unit 10.

[0045] The case 11 is formed of resin having an elasticity and a highmechanical strength, such as polypropylene. For convenience in releasinga molded product from a mold after molding air-conditioning parts in thecase, the case 11 is divided into a plurality of split cases and thenthe plural split cases are integrally combined into one piece.

[0046] An evaporator 13 serving as a heat exchanger for cooling isarranged nearly in a horizontal direction to be inclined by a smallinclined angle above the air inflow space 12 in the case 11 of the airconditioning unit 10. Thus, air blown from the blower unit flows intothe air inflow space 12, and passes through the evaporator 13 upwardlyfrom bottom to top. In the evaporator 13, as well known, low-pressurerefrigerant reduced in pressure by a pressure reducing unit such as anexpansion valve of a refrigeration cycle flows into the evaporator 13and absorbs heat from the air, thereby being evaporated.

[0047] An air mixing door 14 and a hot water type heater core 15 servingas a heat exchanger for heating are arranged above the evaporator 13 (ona downstream side of air flow). The air mixing door 14 is constructed ofa cantilever plate door pivoting on a rotary shaft 14 a.

[0048] The heater core 15, as well known, heats air by using hot water(i.e., engine-cooling water) of a vehicle engine as a heat source. Then,this heater core 15 is also arranged approximately in a horizontaldirection, that is, approximately in parallel to the evaporator 13. Theheater core 15 is smaller in a cross-sectional area than an air passagein the case 11 and is arranged nearer to the front side of the vehiclein the case 11. With this arrangement, a cold air passage 16 throughwhich air (cold air) bypassing the heater core 15 flows is formed on therear side of the vehicle (i.e., position nearer to a passenger seat) ofthe heater core 15.

[0049] The air mixing door 14 is turned in a front-rear direction of thevehicle between the evaporator 13 and the heater core 15 to open orclose an inlet air passage 15 a of the heater core 15 and the cold airpassage 16. By using this air mixing door 14, it is possible to adjustthe air volume ratio between hot air (arrow “a”) passing through theinlet air passage 15 a and heated by the heater core 15, and cold air(arrow “b”) passing through the cold air passage 16. Therefore, thetemperature of air blown into the passenger compartment can be adjustedby operation of the air mixing door 14. Thus, a temperature adjustmentunit for adjusting the temperature of air blown into the passengercompartment is constructed of the air mixing door 14.

[0050] The rotary shaft 14 a of the air mixing door 14 is rotatablysupported by bearing holes (not shown) made in left and right side wallsof the case 11. One end of the rotary shaft 14 a is protruded out fromthe case 11 and is connected to an air mixing door operating mechanism.An actuator mechanism using a motor is typically employed as this airmixing door operating mechanism, but in place of the actuator mechanism,a manually operated mechanism can be employed.

[0051] A hot air guide wall 17 is integrally molded with the case 11 ata specified spacing above the heater core 15, and a hot air passage 18is formed between this hot air guide wall 17 and the top surface of theheater core 15. The hot air passing through the heater core 15 is guidedby the hot air guide wall 17, thereby flowing through the hot airpassage 18 toward the rear side of the vehicle as shown by arrow “a”. Atip bent portion 17 a that is bent downward is formed at a portion onthe rear side of the vehicle of the hot air guide wall 17.

[0052] Since the hot air from the hot air passage 18 is guided downwardin a slanting direction by the tip bent portion 17 a, the hot aircollides opposite to the cold air flowing upward through the cold airpassage 16, as shown by arrow “b”, thereby enhancing the mixing of thecold air and the hot air. An air mixing portion 19 where the cold airand the hot air are mixed is formed above the cold air passage 16.

[0053] A defroster opening 20 is open at a portion on the front side ofthe vehicle in the top surface of the case 11, and a face opening 21 isopen at a portion on the rear side of the vehicle of the defrosteropening 20 in the top surface of the case 11. Each of these defrosteropening 20 and the face opening 21 is rectangular and, to be morespecific, is shaped like a rectangle having long sides in the widthdirection of the vehicle and short sides in the front-rear direction ofthe vehicle.

[0054] The defroster opening 20 is made so as to blow off conditionedair from the air mixing portion 19 toward inside surface of the frontwindshield of the vehicle. Then, the face opening 21 is made so as toblow off conditioned air from the air mixing portion 19 toward the upperbodies of passengers.

[0055] Front seat side foot openings 22 are open at portions above theair mixing portion 19 in the side walls on both the left and right sidesin the width direction of the vehicle of the case 11. These front seatside foot openings 22 on both the left and right sides are made so as toblow off conditioned air from the air mixing portion 18 toward the feetof passengers on the front seats (driver and passenger on the passengerseat). The front seat side foot opening 22 is shaped nearly like atriangle having a sharp top portion as shown in FIG. 4 to FIG. 7.

[0056] A rear seat side foot opening 23 is open in a wall surface 11 abelow the front seat side foot openings 22 and on the rear side of thevehicle of the case 11. This rear seat side foot opening 23 alwayscommunicates with the front seat side foot openings 22 through a rearseat side foot air passage 24. This rear seat side foot air passage 24is formed between the wall surface 11 a on the rear side of the vehicleof the case 11 and a wall surface 11 b for defining the cold air passage16. The wall surface 11 b is located inside the wall surface 11 a on thefront side of the vehicle.

[0057] In this embodiment, an air-outlet mode selecting mechanism (i.e.,mode selecting device) is constructed of first and second rotary doors25, 26. The front seat side foot openings 22 are opened and closed bythe first rotary door 25, and the defroster opening 20 and the faceopening 21 are opened and closed by the second rotary door 26. Acommunication passage 37 is formed adjacent to the vehicle front side ofthe front seat side foot openings 22. The defroster opening 20 and theface opening 21 communicate with the air mixing portion 19 through thiscommunication passage 37. The first rotary door 25 opens and closes alsothe communication passage 37 when it opens and closes the front seatside foot opening 22.

[0058] The first and second rotary doors 25, 26 are different from eachother in outside dimension and the like but are basically equal to eachother in door construction. Hence, the first rotary door 25 is used asan example, and the rotary door construction will be now described indetail with reference to FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the first rotarydoor 25 is integrally constructed of left and right rotary shafts 25 a,25 b, left and right fan-shaped side plates 25 c, 25 d, and an outerperipheral door surface 25 e.

[0059] The left and right rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b are formed toprotrude outside of the left and right sides at the pivots of thefan-shaped left and right side plates 25 c, 25 d, and are rotatablysupported by the bearing holes (not shown) of the left and right sidewalls of the case 11. Then, the outer peripheral door surface 25 e isjoined to outer peripheral end portions of the left and right fan-shapedside plates 25 c, 25 d, so that the left and right fan-shaped sideplates 25 c, 25 d and the outer peripheral door surface 25 e are formedinto a gate shape (like a horseshoe or a U-shape). A space inside thegate shape is always open to a space in the case 11, so air can freelypass through the space inside the gate shape in a direction shown by thearrow “c” (in a direction perpendicular to a direction of the rotaryshaft).

[0060] In the example shown in FIG. 2, each of the left and rightfan-shaped side plates 25 c, 25 d is formed to be slightly curved insidein the direction of the rotary shaft to increase its strength. Then, theouter peripheral door surface 25 e is located at a position separated bya predetermined distance in the radial direction (outward in the radialdirection) of the rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b from the centers of therotary shafts 25 a, 25 b. Further, the outer peripheral door surface 25e is extended in a rotation direction of the rotary door 25 to have apredetermined wall area.

[0061] To be more specific, the outer peripheral door surface 25 e ofthis embodiment is shaped, in cross section, like an arc having a centerat the rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b, and is formed in flat shape into arectangle having long sides in the width direction of the vehicle andshort sides in the front-rear direction of the vehicle.

[0062] The first rotary door 25 including the rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b,the fan-shaped side plates 25 c, 25 d and the outer peripheral doorsurface 25 e which have been described above is integrally molded ofresin having high mechanical strength and a set elasticity, for example,polypropylene.

[0063] Next, a seal structure in the first rotary door 25 will nowdescribed. In this embodiment, a door seal structure is of the lip sealtype so as to reduce a door operating force. Collar-shaped portions 25f, 25 g (see FIG. 4 to be described later) are integrally molded toprotrude outside on the surfaces of the outer peripheral door surface 25e and the side plates 25 c, 25 d that construct the door base parts ofthe door 25. Seal parts 25 h, 25 i are fixed to these collar-shapedportions 25 f, 25 g.

[0064] One seal part 25 h is located at one end in the rotationdirection of the door base part, and the other seal part 25 i is locatedat the other end in the rotation direction of the door base part. Thus,both the seal parts 25 h, 25 i, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, areformed in such a way as to expand in a V-shape from the pivots of thefans (positions where the rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b are arranged) of theside plates 25 c, 25 d, respectively.

[0065] Both of the seal parts 25 h, 25 i are made of elastic materialand protruded outside in the shape of lip (thin plate) from thecollar-shaped portions 25 f, 25 g. Both of the seal parts 25 h, 25 i areprotruded in the V-shape in cross section from the surfaces of thecollar-shaped portions 25 f, 25 g. As shown in FIG. 2, when being viewedfrom a direction of an air flow inside the rotary door shown by thearrow “c”, both the seal parts 25 h, 25 i are formed into a gate shape(like a horseshoe) as its whole shape, just as with the whole shape ofthe rotary door 25.

[0066] Then, by using thermoplastic elastomer that can be moldedsimilarly to thermoplastic resin at high temperatures whereas showsrubber elasticity at room temperature as a specific material for theseal parts 25 h, 25 i, both the seal parts 25 h, 25 i can be integrallymolded and thereby fixed to the collar-shaped portions 25 f, 25 g whilethe door base part of the first rotary door 25 is molded. The rotarydoor 26 is formed into the shape of FIG. 2, similarly to the rotary door25. The rotary door 26 includes rotary shafts 26 a, 26 b, fan-shapedside plates 26 c, 26 d and the outer peripheral door surface 26 e.

[0067] In the case 11, seal surfaces 27, 28, 29 are integrally providedon portions on both front and rear sides in the front-rear direction ofthe vehicle of the front seat side foot opening 22 (portions on bothfront and back sides in the rotation direction in which the first rotarydoor 25) and on the upper surface of the tip bent portion 17 a of thehot air guide wall 17 (see FIG. 1). The seal parts 25 h, 25 i of thefirst rotary door 25 are elastically deformed by and pressed onto thethree seal surfaces 27, 28, 29, respectively.

[0068] Each of the three seal surfaces 27, 28, 29 is shaped like a gatecorresponding to the whole gate shape of each of the seal parts 25 h, 25i, so that the whole gate shape of each of the seal parts 25 h, 25 ipress-contacts the three seal surfaces 27, 28, 29.

[0069] A the rear side portion (outside the door) of a lip portionforming the rear seal part 25 h of the first rotary door 25 is pressedonto the rear side seal surface 27 located on the rear side in thefront-rear direction of the vehicle (in the rotation direction) amongthe seal surfaces 27, 28, 29. Then, a middle seal surface 28 located atthe middle in the front-rear direction of the vehicle (in the doorrotation direction) forms seal surfaces on both the front and rear sidesin the front-rear direction of the vehicle, and a rear side (inside thedoor) of a lip portion forming the front seal part 25 i of the firstrotary door 25 is pressed onto the front side surface of the middle sealsurface 28.

[0070] When the front seat side foot opening 22 is fully opened (in afoot mode to be described later, see FIG. 5), a front side portion(inside the door) of a lip portion for forming the rear seal part 25 hof the rotary door 25 is pressed onto the rear surface of the middleseal surface 28. Further, when the front seat side foot opening 22 isfully opened (see FIG. 5), the front side portion (outside the door) ofa lip portion for forming the front seal part 25 i of the first rotarydoor 25 is pressed onto the front seal surface 29 located on the frontside in the front-rear direction (in the door rotation direction).

[0071]FIG. 5 shows the foot mode where the first rotary door 25 totallycloses the communication passage 37 and fully opens the front seat sidefoot opening 22.

[0072] Similarly, seal surfaces 30, 31, 32 (see FIG. 1) are integrallyformed with the case 11 on the front side portion of the defrosteropening 20 in the front-rear direction (in the door rotation direction),on a middle portion between the defroster opening 20 and the faceopening 21, and on the rear side portion of the face opening 21 in thefront-rear direction (in the door rotation direction), respectively. Theseal parts 26 h, 26 i of the second rotary door 26 are elasticallydeformed by and pressed onto these three seal surfaces 30, 31, 32.

[0073] Among these three seal surfaces 30, 31, 32, each of the sealsurfaces 31, 32 is shaped like a gate corresponding to the whole gateshape of each of the seal parts 26 h, 26 i, and the whole gate-shapedportion of each of the seal parts 26 h, 26 i is pressed onto each of theseal surfaces 31, 32.

[0074] The remaining seal surface 30 is formed on the top surface of thehot air guide wall 17 located at the lower portion of the defrosteropening 20 and hence is shaped like a simple flat plane. The whole gateshape of the seal part 26 i is also pressed onto the seal surface 30. Tobe more specific, a lip portion on the front side (outside) of anapproximate V-shaped lip portion for forming the front seal part 26 i ofthe second rotary door 26 is pressed onto the seal surface 30 as shownin FIG. 1.

[0075] The middle seal surface 31 located at the middle portion betweenthe defroster opening 20 and the face opening 21 forms seal surfaces onboth of the front and rear sides in the front-rear direction of thevehicle. A lip portion of on the front side (inside the door) of anapproximate V-shaped lip portion for forming the rear side seal part 26h of the second rotary door 26 is pressed onto the rear side surface ofthe middle seal surface 31 as shown in FIG. 1.

[0076] When the face opening 21 is completely closed (see FIG. 5 to bedescribed later), a lip portion on the rear side (inside the door) ofthe approximate V-shaped lip portion for forming the front seal part 26i of the second rotary door 26 is pressed onto the front surface of themiddle seal surface 31. Further, when the face opening 21 is completelyclosed, a lip portion on rear side (outside the door) of the approximateV-shaped lip portion for forming the rear side seal part 26 h of thesecond rotary door 26 is pressed onto the rear seal surface 32.

[0077] The first and second rotary doors 25, 26 construct an air-outletmode selecting device for selecting an air outlet mode, and are operatedin synchronization with each other by a common air-outlet mode dooroperating mechanism (not shown). To be more specific, any one of therotary shafts 25 a, 25 b on both the left and right sides of the firstrotary door 25 and any one of the rotary shafts 26 a, 26 b on both leftand right sides of the second rotary door 26 are protruded outside anyone of the left and right side walls of the case 11 and the protrudedportions of these rotary shafts are connected to the common air-outletmode door operating mechanism via a link mechanism. An actuatormechanism using a motor is typically used as this common air-outlet modedoor operating mechanism. However, in place of the actuator mechanism, amanually operated mechanism can be used.

[0078] Next, the construction of a hot air bypass passage forintroducing hot air into the front seat side opening 22 will bedescribed. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line III-III inFIG. 1. A slanting surface 18 a spreading outside in the left and rightdirection of the hot air passage 18 formed above the heater core 15 isintegrally formed with the left and right side walls of the case 11.This slanting surface 18 a is formed in the shape smoothly expandingoutside in the left and right direction toward the rear side of thevehicle. This slanting surface 18 a extends to pass the left and rightoutside portions of the air mixing portion 19 formed above the cold airpassage 16, and extends toward the rear side of the vehicle.

[0079] The front seat side foot openings 22, 22 on the left and rightsides are arranged at the portions extended to the vehicle rear side ofthe slanting surface 18 a. With this arrangement, a hot air bypasspassage 33 through which the left and right outside portions of the hotair passage 18 directly communicate with the front seat side footopenings 22, 22 can be formed inside the left and right portions of theslanting surface 18 a. In FIG. 1, a surface 18 b with a step is forforming a bottom surface of the hot air bypass passage 33 and protrudesoutside to the left and right at a height position near the air mixingportion 19.

[0080] Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described inthe above-described construction of the air conditioner. FIG. 1 shows astate in a face mode in which both the front and rear seal parts 25 h,25 i of the rotary door 25 in the rotation direction are elasticallypressed onto the case side seal surfaces 27, 28 at the front and back ofthe front seat side foot openings 22, 22. Here, each of the sealsurfaces 27, 28 has a gate shape (like a horseshoe, U-shape), and boththe seal parts 25 h, 25 i each having the gate shape (a letter C) of thefirst rotary door 25 are pressed onto the whole seal surfaces 27, 28,respectively.

[0081] As a result, a communication between the inside space of thefirst rotary door 25 and the outside space of the first rotary door 25is interrupted. The front seat side foot openings 22, 22 on the left andright sides communicate with the outside space shaped like a gate of thefirst rotary door 25, so the front seat side openings 22, 22 are broughtby the first rotary door 25 into a state where they do not communicatewith a passage on the upstream side of the first rotary door 25. Thatis, the front seat openings 22 are closed by the first rotary door 25.

[0082] At this time, the first rotary door 25 opens the communicationpassage 37, and the gate-shaped inside space of the first rotary door 25makes a space through which an air mixing portion 19 communicates withthe communication passage 37. Thus, air on the side of the air mixingportion 19 directly flows into the communication passage 37, and passesthrough the inside space of the first rotary door 25 and flows into thecommunication passage 37.

[0083] Then, in the face mode, both the seal parts 26 h, 26 i at thefront and back in the rotation direction of the second rotary door 26are elastically pressed onto the case side seal surfaces 31, 30,respectively. At this time, by the second rotary door 26, the defrosteropening 20 is completely closed and the face opening 21 is fully opened.Thus, conditioned air from the communication passage 37 is blown offonly from the face opening 21 toward the upper haft body of a passenger.

[0084] In FIG. 1, there is shown a maximum cooling state where the airmixing door 14 fully closes the inlet air passage 15 a of the heatercore 15 and fully opens the cold air passage 16 in the face mode. Thus,the whole volume of cold air cooled by the evaporator 13 passes throughthe cold air passage 16 and is blow from the face opening 21 toward theupper half body of the passenger.

[0085] Then, by turning the air mixing door 14 clockwise from themaximum cooling state shown by solid line in FIG. 1, the inlet airpassage 15 a of the heater core 15 is opened. For this reason, byadjusting the rotational position of the air mixing door 14, the airvolume ratio between hot air heated by the heater core 15 and cold airpassing through the cold air passage 16 can be adjusted, and thetemperature of air blown toward the upper half body of the passenger canbe adjusted to an arbitrary level.

[0086]FIG. 4 shows a state of a bi-level mode in which the first rotarydoor 25 is turned clockwise by a predetermined angle from the positionshown in FIG. 1. In this state, the rear seal part 25 h of the firstrotary door 25 is positioned at a middle position between the case sideseal surfaces 27, 28 at the front and back of the front seat side footopenings 22, 22.

[0087] Thus, the passages of the front seat side foot openings 22, 22and the communication passage 37 are brought into a half-open state. Onthe other hand, the second rotary door 26 keeps the position shown inFIG. 1 as it is, so the defroster opening 20 is kept in a completelyclosed state and the face opening 21 is kept in a fully opened state.

[0088] Accordingly, air from the air mixing portion 19 flows to thepassages of the front seat side foot openings 22, 22 and at the sametime passes through the communication passage 37 and flows also into theface opening 21. In this manner, it is possible to blow off air towardthe feet of the passengers on the front seat and the rear seat throughthe front seat side foot openings 22, 22 and the rear seat side footopening 23 and at the same time, to blow off air toward the upper halfbody of the passenger from the face opening 21.

[0089] The bi-level mode is used mainly in a middle temperature seasonof spring and autumn. For this reason, the air mixing door 14 isoperated to a middle turning position between the maximum coolingposition shown by the solid line in FIG. 1 and the maximum heatingposition shown by the double dot and dash line in FIG. 1 to adjust theair temperature blown into the passenger compartment to a middletemperature range.

[0090] The passages of the front seat side foot openings 22, 22 arenearer to the cold air passage 16 than the hot air passage 18. Thus, ifthe hot air bypass passage 33 shown in FIG. 3 is not formed, cold air inthe cold air passage 16 readily flows to the passages of the front seatside foot openings 22, 22 and hot air in the hot air passage 18 readilyflows to the face opening 21. In this case, the temperature of air blownoff toward the face of the passenger is higher than the temperature ofair blown off toward the feet of the passenger. As a result, airconditioning feeling in the bi-level mode is deteriorated.

[0091] In contrast to this, according to the embodiment, because the hotair bypass passage 33 shown in FIG. 3 is provided, hot air in the hotair passage 18 can directly be introduced into the passages of frontseat side foot openings 22, 22. Thus, the volume of cold air flowing tothe passages of the front seat side foot openings 22, 22 from the coldair passage 16 can be reduced, and the volume of hot air flowing to thepassages of the face openings 21 from the hot air passage 18 can bereduced.

[0092] Thus, the volume of cold air flowing toward the face opening 21can be increased, and there can be provided a comfortable up/down airtemperature distribution of a type of keeping passenger's head cool andfeet warm by making the temperature of air blown off toward the face ofthe passenger lower than the temperature of air blown off toward thefeet of the passenger. Thus, even in an arrangement in which thepassages of the front seat foot openings 22, 22 are nearer to the coldair passage 16 than the hot air passage 18, air conditioning feeling inthe bi-level mode can be improved.

[0093] Next, FIG. 5 shows a state in a foot mode. In the foot mode, thefirst rotary door 25 is further turned clockwise by a predeterminedangle from the position shown in FIG. 4, so that both the seal parts 25h, 25 i of the first rotary door 25 are elastically pressed onto thecase side seal surfaces 28, 29 at the front and back of thecommunication passage 37, respectively. As a result, by the first rotarydoor 25, the communication passage 37 is brought into a closed state andthe passages of the front seat side foot openings 22, 22 on the left andright sides are brought into a fully opened state.

[0094] Because the defroster opening 20 and the face opening 21 arearranged on the downstream side of the communication passage 37, boththe openings 20, 21 are brought into a closed state irrespective of therotation position of the second rotary door 26. Here, the second rotarydoor 26 is anticlockwise turned by a predetermined angle from theposition shown in FIG. 4 in synchronization with the rotationaldisplacement of the first rotary door 25. With this arrangement, boththe seal parts 26 h, 26 i of the second rotary door 26 are elasticallypressed onto the case side seal surfaces 32, 31 at the front and back ofthe face opening 21, respectively, so the face opening 21 is completelyclosed and the defroster opening 20 is fully opened.

[0095] Also in this case, the inside space of the first rotary door 25serves as an air passage for flowing air from the air mixing portion 19toward the front seat side foot openings 22, 22. Thus, air from the airmixing portions 19 flows directly to the front seat side foot openings22, 22, and is introduced into the inside space of the first rotary door25 toward the front seat side foot openings 22, 22.

[0096] The foot mode is used for blowing off hot air toward the feet ofthe passengers mainly in a heating operation. When the air mixing door14 is operated to the position shown by a double dot and dash line inFIG. 1, a maximum heating state can be set in which the inlet airpassage 15 a of the heater core 15 is fully opened and in which the coldair passage 16 is completely closed. With this operation of the airmixing door 14, the whole volume of air is heated by the heater core 15to make it hot air and this hot air can be blown off toward the feet ofthe passengers on the front seat and the rear seat through the frontseat side foot openings 22, 22 and the rear seat side foot opening 23.

[0097] By turning the air mixing door 14 anticlockwise from the positionshown by the double dot and dash line in FIG. 1, the cold air passage 16is opened. For this reason, by adjusting the turning position of the airmixing door 14, the air volume ratio between hot air and cold airflowing into the air mixing portion 19 is adjusted, and the temperatureof air blown off toward the feet of the passenger can be adjusted to anarbitrary temperature.

[0098] Next, FIG. 6 shows a state in a foot/defroster mode. The firstrotary door 25 is turned anticlockwise by a predetermined angle from theposition shown in FIG. 5, thereby being moved to the same position as inthe bi-level mode shown in FIG. 4. Thus, both of the passages of thefront seat side foot openings 22, 22 and the communication passage 37are brought into a half-open state by the first rotary door 25. On theother hand, the second rotary door 26 is kept at the position shown inFIG. 5 as it is, so the defroster opening 20 is kept in a fully openedstate and the face opening 21 is kept in a completely closed state.

[0099] Thus, air from the air mixing portion 19 flows into the passagesof the front seat side foot openings 22, 22 and at the same time flowsthrough the communication passage 37 and the inside space of the secondrotary door 26 also into the defroster opening 20. Thus, it is possibleto blow off air toward the feet of the passengers on the front seat andthe rear seat through the front seat side foot openings 22, 22 and therear seat side foot opening 23, and at the same time, to blow off airtoward the inside surface of the front windshield of the vehicle throughthe defroster opening 20. This air blown to the inside surface of thefront windshield of the vehicle can prevent fogging of the frontwindshield of the vehicle.

[0100] Also in this foot/defroster mode, by using the hot air bypasspassage 33 shown in FIG. 3, hot air in the hot air passage 18 candirectly be introduced into the passages of the front seat side footopenings 22, 22, so the volume of hot air flowing toward the defrosteropening 20 side from the hot air passage 18 can be decreased. Therefore,the volume of cold air flowing toward the defroster opening 20 can beincreased and hence there is provided a comfortable up/down airtemperature distribution of the type of keeping the passenger's headcool and feet warm by making the temperature of air blown off from thedefroster opening 20 lower than the temperature of air blown off fromthe foot openings 22. Thus, air conditioning feeling in thefoot/defroster mode can be improved in the same way as in the bi-levelmode.

[0101] Next, FIG. 7 shows a state in a defroster mode. In the defrostermode, the first rotary door 25 is further turned anticlockwise by apredetermined angle from the position shown in FIG. 6, thereby beingmoved to the same position as in the face mode shown in FIG. 1. Thus, bythe first rotary door 25, the passages of the front seat side footopenings 22, 22 are completely closed and the communication passage 37is fully opened. On the other hand, the second rotary door 26 is kept atthe position shown in FIG. 6 as it is, so the defroster opening 20 iskept in a fully opened state and the face opening 21 is kept in acompletely closed state.

[0102] Thus, the air passage on the air mixing portion 19 sidecommunicates with only the defroster opening 20 through thecommunication passage 37 and the inside space of the second rotary door26. Thus, the whole volume of air from the air mixing portion 19 isblown off toward the inside surface of the front windshield of thevehicle to increase a defogging capacity of the front windshield of thevehicle in a maximum level.

[0103] According to the first embodiment of the present invention,because the first and second rotary doors 25, 25 are used as doors forselecting the air outlet modes, a force required to select the airoutlet modes can be reduced. That is, in the first and second rotarydoors 25, 26, because the outer peripheral surfaces 25 e, 26 e areturned around the rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b, 26 a, 26 b in a directionperpendicular to an air flow to open or close the respective openings20, 21, 22, the outer peripheral door surfaces 25 e, 26 e neither needto be turned against the air flow as in the case of the cantilever platedoor nor undergoes influence of the self weight of the door.

[0104] Further, the lip seal type seal parts 25 h, 25 i, 26 h, 26 i ofthe first and second rotary doors 25, 26 are pressed onto the case sideseal surfaces 27 to 32 only when the first and second rotary doors 25,26 are brought to the positions where the respective openings 20, 21, 22are completely closed. While the first and second rotary doors 25, 26are being turned, the lip seal type seal parts 25 h, 25 i, 26 h, 26 iare separated from the case side seal surfaces 27 to 32, so slidingfriction is not caused on the seal parts by turning the first and secondrotary doors 25, 26. Thus, it is possible to effectively reduce anoperating force required to select the air outlet mode as compared withan air outlet mode door using a cantilever plate door.

[0105] Still further, the first rotary door 25 is shaped like the gateby the outer peripheral door surface 25 e and the side plates 25 c, 25d, and the rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b are arranged in such a way as toprotrude outside in the left and right direction. Similarly, the secondrotary door 26 is shaped like the gate by the outer peripheral doorsurface 26 e and the side plates 26 c, 26 d, and the rotary shafts 26 a,26 b are arranged in such a way as to protrude outside in the left andright direction. Thus, the spaces inside the first and second rotarydoors 25, 26 have no protruding portion preventing the air flow formedtherein and hence can be used, just as they are, as passages throughwhich air flows to the respective openings 20, 21, 22. Therefore, ascompared with an air-outlet mode door using a butterfly door, the firstand second rotary doors 25, 26 according to this embodiment can reducethe air flow resistance and increase the volume of air blown off fromthe respective openings 20, 21, 22 and reduce air blast noises (whizzingnoises in the air).

[0106] According to the first and second rotary doors 25, 26 of thefirst embodiment of the present invention, a phenomenon in which coldair is separated from hot air as in the case with the butterfly door isnot caused. Therefore, it is possible to reduce variations in thetemperature of air blown off from the respective openings 20, 21, and22. The first rotary door 25 is formed into the gate shape constructedwith the outer peripheral door surface 25 e and the side plates 25 c, 25d.

[0107] The first rotary door 25 opens and closes the air passage betweenthe gate-shaped inside space and its outside space. Therefore, theopening 22 can be arranged on both of the outer peripheral side of theouter peripheral door surface 25 e and the left and right sides of theside plates 25 c, 25 d. Similarly, the second rotary door 26 is formedinto the gate shape constructed with the outer peripheral door surface26 e and the side plates 26 c, 26 d. The second rotary door 26 opens andcloses the air passage between the gate-shaped inside space and itsoutside space. Therefore, the openings 20, 21 can be arranged on both ofthe outer peripheral side of the outer peripheral door surface 26 e andthe left and right sides of the side plates 26 c, 26 d. To be morespecific, the left and right foot openings 22, 22 can be arranged on theoutsides in the left and right direction of the side plates 25 c, 25 dof the first rotary door 25.

[0108] Thus, the upstream air passage of the first rotary door 25 can bemade to communicate in line with the left and right foot openings 22, 22to effectively reduce pressure loss caused by a bent passage to the footopenings 22, 22. Therefore, the volume of air blown off toward the feetof the passengers can be increased.

[0109] The air-outlet mode selecting mechanism is provided with the twofirst and second rotary doors 25, 26. Further, the first rotary door 25opens and closes the foot openings 22, 22 and the second rotary door 26opens and closes the defroster opening 20 and the face opening 21. Thus,the foot openings 22, 22 can independently be formed in arbitrarypositions without regard to the turning path of the outer peripheraldoor surface 26 e of the second rotary door 26 (that is, positions wherethe defroster opening 20 and the face opening 21 are arranged).

[0110] In addition, the first and second rotary doors 25, 26 can begradually reduced in size as compared with a single rotary door foropening and closing all three air outlet openings 20, 21, 22. Combinedwith the above-described features, it is possible to improve themounting performance of the air conditioning unit in the vehicle.

[0111] Because hot air in the hot air passage 18 can directly beintroduced into the passages of the front seat side foot openings 22, 22by using the hot air bypass passage 33 shown in FIG. 3, it is possibleto provide a comfortable up/down air temperature distribution of thetype of keeping passenger's head cool and feet warm. This airtemperature distribution is obtained by making the temperature of airblowing off from the face opening 21 in the bi-level mode or thetemperature of air blown off from the defroster opening 20 in thefoot/defroster mode lower than the temperature of air blown off from thefoot openings 22. Thus, even in the arrangement in which the passages ofthe front seat side foot openings 22, 22 are nearer to the cold airpassage 16 than the hot air passage 18, it is possible to improve theair conditioning feeling in the bi-level mode and in the foot/defrostermode.

[0112] In the above-described first embodiment, a case where the rearseat side foot opening 23 is provided in addition to the front seat sidefoot openings 22, 22 has been described. However, the present inventioncan be put into practice in the same way also in a case where the rearseat side foot opening 23 is not provided but only the front seat sidefoot openings 22, 22 are provided.

Second Embodiment

[0113] The second embodiment of the present invention will be nowdescribed with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9.

[0114] In the above-described first embodiment, a region where the firstrotary door 25 is turned and a region where the second rotary door 26 isturned are set independently from each other. However, in the secondembodiment, any one of the first and second rotary doors 25, 26 isarranged in a stacked manner inside the other rotary door. In thismanner, the region where the first rotary door 25 is turned partiallyoverlaps the region where the second rotary door 26 is turned.

[0115]FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 show the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is across-sectional view taken on the line IX-IX in FIG. 8. A length L1 inan axial direction of the outer peripheral door surface 25 e of thefirst rotary door 25 is made a specified length shorter than a length L2in the axial direction of the outer peripheral door surface 26 e of thefirst rotary door 26. Thus, the gate-shaped first rotary door 25constructed of the outer peripheral door surface 25 e and the left andright side surfaces 25 c, 25 d is arranged in an inside space of thegate-shaped second rotary door 26 constructed of the outer peripheraldoor surface 26 e and the left and right side surfaces 26 c, 26 d.

[0116] To be more specific, as shown in FIG. 8, the first rotary door 25is located at a lower position in the vertical direction of the vehicleand the second rotary door 26 is located at an upper position in thevertical direction of the vehicle, whereby the first and second rotarydoors 25, 26 are arranged in a stacked manner. With this arrangement,the rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b of the first rotary door 25 are located atlower positions in the vertical direction of the vehicle and the rotaryshafts 26 a, 26 b of the second rotary door 26 are located at upperpositions in the vertical direction of the vehicle.

[0117] According to the second embodiment, the total rotationaloperation region of both the first and second rotary doors 25, 26 can bereduced as compared with that of the first embodiment. Therefore, thepositions where the defroster opening 20 and the face opening 21 areformed can be set near to the position where the front seat side footopenings 22, 22 are formed. This arrangement can reduce the whole sizeof the air conditioning unit 10 and can further improve the mountingperformance of the air conditioning unit 10 in the vehicle.

[0118] Although not shown in FIG. 9, also in the second embodiment inthe same way, by providing the hot air bypass passage 33 in the firstembodiment, hot air in the hot air passage 18 can directly be introducedinto the passages of the front seat side foot openings 22, 22.

Third Embodiment

[0119] The third embodiment of the present invention will be nowdescribed with reference to FIG. 10. The third embodiment is differentin the arrangement of the air outlet openings 20, 21, 22 from the firstand second embodiments. That is, in the third embodiment, as shown inFIG. 10, the foot openings 22 are arranged at portions near theuppermost portions of the left and right side walls of the case 11 andon the rear side of the vehicle of the defroster opening 20. Inaddition, the face opening 21 is arranged at a portion adjacent to theair mixing portion 19 of the wall surface on the rear side of thevehicle of the case 11.

[0120] In the air conditioner for a vehicle, an air-outlet mode isusually selected in the order of (1) face mode → (2) bi-level mode → (3)foot mode → (4) foot/defroster mode → (5) defroster mode, relative tothe operating direction of the actuator mechanism or the manualoperation mechanism of the air-outlet mode door operation mechanism.

[0121] According to the third embodiment, the respective openings arearranged in the order of the face opening 21 → the foot opening 22 → thedefroster opening 20 from the upstream side to the downstream side inthe air flow of the case 11. Thus, when the air-outlet mode is selectedfrom (1) to (5), the first rotary door 25 is turned in the followingorder. That is, the first rotary door 25 is turned in the followingmanner: (1) in the face mode, the face opening 21 is in the full-openstate and the communication passage 37 is in the completely closedstate; next, (2) in the bi-level mode, the face opening 21 and thecommunication passage 37 are brought to a half-open state; next, (3) inthe foot mode, the face opening 21 is brought to a completely closedstate and the communication passage 37 is brought to a full-open state;further, (4) in the foot/defroster mode, the same opening positions asin the foot mode are held; and (5) in the defroster mode, the sameopening positions as in the foot mode are held.

[0122] Similarly, the second rotary door 26 is turned in the followingmanner: (1) in the face mode, the foot opening 22 is brought to afull-open state and the defroster opening 20 is brought to a completelyclosed state; next, (2) in the bi-level mode, the same positions as inthe face mode openings are held; next, (3) in the foot mode, the sameopening positions as in the face mode are held; further, (4) in thefoot/defroster mode, the foot opening 22 and the defroster opening 20are brought to a half-open state; and (5) in the defroster mode, thefoot opening 22 is brought to a completely closed state and thedefroster opening 20 is brought to a full-open state.

[0123] According to the third embodiment, the first rotary door 25 isturned by one half of its total rotational angle in the order of thefull-open state → the half-open state → the totally closed state of theface opening 21. Then, after the first rotary door 25 is brought to thestate where the face opening 21 is totally closed, that is, after theoperation is switched to the foot mode, the second rotary door 26 isturned by one half of its total rotational angle in the order of thefull-open state → the half-open state → the totally closed state of thefoot opening 22.

[0124] Thus, the first and second rotary doors 25, 26 are turned by theone half of the respective total rotational angles at shifted timings.Thus, this can effectively reduce the force required to turn the firstand second rotary doors 25, 26.

Fourth Embodiment

[0125] The fourth embodiment of the present invention will be nowdescribed with reference to FIG. 11. In the fourth embodiment, thearrangement of the air outlet openings 20, 21, 22 is further changed ascompared with that of the third embodiment. That is, in the fourthembodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the foot opening 22 is arranged on thefront side of the vehicle of the defroster opening 20.

[0126] According to the fourth embodiment, hot air in the hot airpassage 18 is U-turned at the tip bent portion 17 a of the hot air guidewall 17, and then is pushed by the cold air flow from the cold airpassage 16, thereby easily flowing to the foot opening 22 on the frontside of the vehicle. On the other hand, because the face opening 21 isprovided adjacent to the cold air passage 16, cold air in the cold airpassage 16 originally easily flows to the face opening 21.

[0127] For this reason, in the fourth embodiment, even if the hot airbypass passage 33 of the first embodiment is not provided, it ispossible to provide the comfortable up/down air temperature distributionof the type of keeping the passenger' head cool and feet warm in thebi-level mode and in the foot/defroster mode.

Fifth Embodiment

[0128] The fifth embodiment of the present invention will be nowdescribed with reference to FIGS. 12-14. In the vehicle air conditioner,typically, the face opening 21 is divided into a center face opening anda side face opening. The center face opening is connected to a centerface air outlet port located at the center in the left and rightdirection of the instrument panel of the vehicle, and the side faceopening is connected to side face air outlet ports located near the leftand right side ends of the instrument panel of the vehicle. By keepingthe side face opening at an open state in all air outlet modes,conditioned air can always be blown off from the side face air outletports. Accordingly, in the foot mode, the foot/defroster mode and thedefroster mode which are mainly used in winter, hot air is blown off tothe side windshields of the vehicle from the side face air outlet portsso as to prevent the portion near to the windshield of the upper halfbody of the passenger from feeling cold by the radiation of cold heatfrom the windshield at a low temperature, and to perform a defoggingfunction of the side windshields.

[0129] In the above-described first embodiment, in the foot mode shownin FIG. 5, by the first rotary door 25, the foot openings 22 are fullyopened and the communication passage 37 is totally closed. For thisreason, even if the face opening 21 is divided into the center faceopening and the side face opening, a part of conditioned air cannot bebranched to the side face opening.

[0130] Then, it is thought to take a measure of turning the first rotarydoor 25 anticlockwise by a small amount of rotational angle from thetotally closed position of the communication passage 37 (position shownin FIG. 5) to open a part of the communication passage 37. It is alsothought to take another measure of turning the second rotary door 26clockwise by a small amount of rotational angle from the totally closedposition of the face opening 21 (position shown in FIG. 5) to open apart of the face opening 21. According to these measures, a part ofconditioned air flows to both of the center face opening and the sideface opening of the face opening 21. Thus, in the foot mode, hot airpasses through the center face opening and is blown off also from thecenter face air outlet port. Therefore, the passenger feels hot at hisface, and these measures can not be put into practice.

[0131] The object of the fifth embodiment is to keep the side faceopening of the face opening 21 at the open state in all air outlet modesin the air-outlet mode selecting mechanism for opening and closing thedefroster opening 20, the face opening 21 and the foot opening 22 by thecombined use of the first and second rotary doors 25, 26.

[0132]FIG. 12 to FIG. 14 show the fifth embodiment of the presentinvention. The fifth embodiment has the same arrangement of thedefroster opening 20, the face opening 21 and the foot opening 22 as theabove-described first embodiment. Thus, in the fifth embodiment,similarly to the above-described first embodiment, the foot opening 22and the communication passage 37 are opened and closed by the firstrotary door 25, and the defroster opening 20 and the face opening 21 areopened and closed by the second rotary door 26. Here, FIG. 13 is a topview of the left half portion of the air conditioning unit 10 (case 11)and FIG. 14 shows a left half portion of the second rotary door 26,corresponding to the left half portion of the air conditioning unit 10.

[0133] In the fifth embodiment, the face opening 21 is divided into acenter face opening 21 a located at the center in the width direction ofthe vehicle and side face openings 21 b located on the left and rightsides of the center face opening 21 a in the top surface of the case 11.

[0134] The side face openings 21 b on both of the left and right sidesare separated from the center face opening 21 a by a partition wall 21c, and conditioned air from the air mixing portion 19 flows through thecommunication passage 37 and then independently flows to the center faceopening 21 a and the side face openings 21 b.

[0135] The center face opening 21 a is connected to a center face airoutlet port located at the center in the width direction of theinstrument panel of the vehicle via a center face duct (not shown).Then, the side face openings 21 b are connected to side face air outletports located near left and right side ends of the instrument panel ofthe vehicle via a side face duct (not shown).

[0136] It is illustrated in FIG. 12 and FIG. 13 that the foot opening 22is directly open to the passenger compartment. However, actually, a footduct (not shown) is connected to the foot opening 22 and guides air inthe foot opening 22 downward to the left and right sides of the case 11.

[0137]FIGS. 14A to 14C illustrate a specific example of the secondrotary door 26 in accordance with the fifth embodiment. The example hasthe same rotary door structure as the first embodiment in which anarc-shaped outer peripheral door surface 26 e, side parts 26 c, 26 d andseal parts 26 h, 26 i are provided in the second rotary door 26 atportions corresponding to the center face opening 21 a in the widthdirection of the vehicle.

[0138] On the other hand, in the width direction of the vehicle of thesecond rotary door 26, the above-described elements 26 e, 26 d, 26 h, 26i are not provided at the portions corresponding to the side faceopenings 21 b on the left and right sides, but only the rotary shafts 26a, 26 b and an air volume adjusting plate 26 j are provided. Accordingto this construction, the side face openings 21 b on the left and rightsides are not totally closed by the second rotary door 26 but alwayskept in the open state.

[0139]FIG. 14B shows only the left side face opening 21 b and does notshow the right side face opening 21 b, so it does not show the rightside part 26 d, the right rotary shaft 26 b, and the right air volumeadjusting plate 26 j of the second rotary door 26. However, the rightelements can be provided symmetrically to the left elements.

[0140] The air volume adjusting plate 26 j is provided similarly to acantilever plate door and is integrally turned with the left and rightrotary shafts 26 a, 26 b of the second rotary door 26 to change thepassage areas of the left and right side face openings 21 b. Therefore,an air volume blown from the left and right side face openings 21 b canbe adjusted in response to a change in the air outlet mode.

[0141]FIG. 12 shows the air conditioning unit 10 in the foot mode inaccordance with the fifth embodiment. In the foot mode, the first rotarydoor 25 is operated to a rotational position where the foot opening 22is nearly fully opened and where the communication passage 37 isslightly opened. Thus, a major part of conditioned air (hot air) fromthe air mixing portion 19 flows to the foot opening 22 and a part ofconditioned air (hot air) from the air mixing portion 19 is branched tothe communication passage 37 as shown by the arrow “e”.

[0142] At this time, the second rotary door 26 is turned to the positionshown in FIG. 12 where the seal parts 26 h, 26 i are pressed onto thecase side seal surfaces 31, 32 located at the front and back sides ofthe center face opening 21 a to totally close the center face opening 21a. In contrast to this, because the portion of the second rotary door26, corresponding to the side face openings 21 b, are not provided withseal parts 26 h, 26 i, the side face openings 21 b on the left and rightsides are not totally closed by the second rotary door 26 but are alwayskept at the open state.

[0143] Thus, the conditioned air branched to the communication passage37 flows into the side face openings 21 b on the left and right sides asshown by the arrow “f” and passes through the side face openings 21 b onthe left and right sides and then is blown off from the side face airoutlet ports (not shown) to the vicinity of the side windshields of thevehicle. This can prevent the portion on the windshield side of thepassenger's upper half body from feeling cold by the radiation of coldheat from the windshield at a low temperature. This can also produce aneffect of preventing fogging of the side windshields of the vehicle.

[0144] According to the fifth embodiment, in the foot mode, because thecommunication passage 37 communicates with the defroster opening 20through the inside space of the second rotary door 26, a part ofconditioned air flows also to the defroster opening 20 as shown by arrow“g” and is blown off to the front windshield of the vehicle to producean effect of preventing fogging of the front windshield of the vehicle.

Sixth Embodiment

[0145] The sixth embodiment of the present invention will be nowdescribed with reference to FIGS. 15-21.

[0146] In the above-described fifth embodiment of the present invention,when the conditioned air flows to the side face openings 21 b, a part ofconditioned air inevitably flows also to the defroster opening 20.However, there is a case where it is requested to improve a heatingcapability of the passenger's feet in the foot mode by stopping air fromblowing off from the defroster opening 20 and by increasing an airvolume blown off from the foot opening 22.

[0147] The sixth embodiment responds to such a request and FIG. 15 toFIG. 21 show the sixth embodiment. FIG. 15 and FIG. 16 show a state inthe foot mode in which air is stopped from blowing off from thedefroster opening 20 in the sixth embodiment, whereas FIG. 20 and FIG.21 show a state in the foot mode in which air is blown off also from thedefroster opening 20 in the sixth embodiment.

[0148] Then, FIG. 15 and FIG. 20 correspond to FIG. 12 in theabove-described fifth embodiment, FIG. 16 and FIG. 21 correspond to FIG.13 in the above-described fifth embodiment, and FIGS. 17A to 17Ccorrespond to FIGS. 14A to 14C in the above-described fifth embodiment.FIG. 18 shows a state where the second rotary door 26 is dismounted toclearly show the shapes of the case side seal surfaces 32 a, 32 b, 31 a,31 b in the center face opening 21 a and in the side face openings 21 b.Then, in contrast to FIG. 18, FIG. 19 shows a state where the secondrotary door 26 is mounted and shows the arrangement of the seal parts 26h, 26 i of the second rotary door 26.

[0149] Hereinafter, different points between the sixth embodiment andthe fifth embodiment will mainly specifically be described. The secondrotary door 26, as shown in FIGS. 17A to 17C, has a first outerperipheral door surface 26 e having a large radius (distance) from thecenter of the rotary shaft 26 a (26 b) and a second outer peripheraldoor surface 26 e′ having a smaller radius (distance) from the center ofthe rotary shaft 26 a (26 b) than the first outer peripheral doorsurface 26 e.

[0150] Thus, the second rotary door 26 is formed in the shape having astep part 26 k in the radial direction between the first outerperipheral door surface 26 e and the second outer peripheral doorsurface 26 e′. The first outer peripheral door surface 26 e is arrangedin correspondence to the center face opening 21 a of the face opening 21and the second outer peripheral door surface 26 e′ is arranged incorrespondence to the side face openings 21 b.

[0151] The seal parts 26 h, 26 i are fixed to the peripheral portions ofthe first and second outer peripheral door surfaces 26 e, 26 e′, thestep part 26 k and the side parts 26 c (26 d).

[0152] In the sixth embodiment, as shown in FIG. 16, FIG. 18, FIG. 19,and FIG. 21, the side face openings 21 b are formed in such a mannerthat they protrude outside in the width direction of the vehicle by aspecified length L3 from the defroster opening 20 in the top surface ofthe case 11. Then, the second outer peripheral door surface 26 e′ of thesecond rotary door 26 is arranged in correspondence to a range where thedefroster opening 20 is formed, among the side face openings 21 b. Thesecond outer peripheral door surface 26 e′ is not arranged in the rangeof the specified length L3 in the side face openings 21 b.

[0153] Thus, the case side seal surfaces 32 b, 31 b in the side faceopenings 21 b, as shown in the shaded areas in FIG. 18, are also formedonly in an area corresponding to the range where the defroster opening20 is formed and are not formed in the range of the specified length L3.In FIG. 18, the case side seal surfaces 32 a, 31 a in the center faceopening 21 a are also similarly shown by the shaded portions.

[0154]FIG. 19 shows a case where one side seal part 26 h of the secondrotary door 26 is located on the case side seal surfaces 32 a, 32 b andthat the other one side seal part 26 i of the second rotary door 26 islocated on the bottom surface side of the case side seal surfaces 31 a,31 b. With this, in the range of the specified length L3 of the sideface openings 21 b, the side face openings 21 b always keeps the openstate irrespective of the rotational position of the second rotary door26. The shaded portion in FIG. 19 shows the seal part 26 h.

[0155] On the other hand, in the case 11, there is provided with abypass passage 34 through which the upstream side of the first rotarydoor 25 directly communicates with the range of the above-describedspecified length L3 of the side face openings 21 b (portion alwayskeeping the open state). This bypass passage 34, to be more specific, isformed between the lower side of the seal surface 29 on the front sideof the vehicle among the case side seal surfaces 27, 28, 29 provided incorrespondence to the first rotary door 25, and a tip portion on therear side of the vehicle of the hot air guide wall 17.

[0156] That is, a space extending at a predetermined spacing in thewidth direction of the vehicle is formed between the seal surface 29 onthe front side of the vehicle and the tip portion on the rear side ofthe vehicle of the hot air guide wall 17, and the rear side of thevehicle of this space communicates with the air mixing portion 19. Then,both side end portions in the left and right direction of this spacecommunicate with the portions having the above-described length L3 andbeing always open among the side face openings 21 b on both the left andright sides. In this manner, the bypass passage 34 can be formed.Through this bypass passage 34, the upstream portion (near the airmixing portion 19) of the first rotary door 25 can directly communicatewith the always open portions having the above-described length L3 amongthe side face openings 21 b on both the left and right sides.

[0157] In the sixth embodiment, it is possible to selectively set afirst foot mode without air blown from the defroster opening 20 and asecond foot mode having air blown from the defroster opening 20. In thecase of the first foot mode, the first rotary door 25 and the secondrotary door 26 are operated to the rotational position shown in FIG. 15.

[0158] That is, the first rotary door 25 is turned to a position wherethe foot opening 22 is fully opened and where the communication passage37 on the upstream side of the second rotary door 26 is totally closed.Then, the second rotary door 26 is turned to a position where both theseal parts 26 h, 26 i on the front and back sides of the second rotarydoor 26 are pressed onto the case side seal surfaces 32 a, 31 a in thecenter face opening 21 a and the case side seal surfaces 32 b, 31 b inthe side face opening 21 b, respectively.

[0159] With this turning operation, the main stream of air from the airmixing potion 19 is blown to the passenger's feet from the foot opening22. At the same time, a part of air from the air mixing portion 19 isdirectly introduced through the bypass passage 34 into the always openportions having the specified length L3 of the left and right sideopenings 21 b. Then, air is introduced into the side face air outletports located on the left -and right side end portions of the instrumentpanel from the side face openings 21 b on the left and right sides, andis blown off from this air outlet ports to the vicinity of the left andright side windshields.

[0160] At this time, because the communication passage is totallyclosed, air is not blown off from the center face opening 21 a and thedefroster opening 20. Thus, the first foot mode for blowing air onlyfrom the foot opening 22 and the side face openings 21 b can beperformed.

[0161] With this operation of the first foot mode, it is possible toheat the passenger's feet. At the same time, in the first foot mode, byblowing off air from the side face openings 21 b, it can prevent theportion on the side windshield side of the passenger's upper half bodyfrom feeling cold when outside air temperature is low, and further itcan prevent fogging of the side windshields.

[0162] Next, when the second foot mode where air is blown off from notonly the foot opening 22 and the side face openings 21 b but also thedefroster opening 20 is performed, the first rotary door 25 is turned tothe rotational position shown in FIG. 20. That is, the first rotary door25 is anticlockwise turned by a small angle from the position shown inFIG. 15 to slightly open the communication passage 37 and to nearlyfully open the foot opening 22. Here, the second door 26 is kept at thesame rotational position shown in FIG. 15.

[0163] With this operation of the second foot mode, a part of air fromthe air mixing portion 19 is branched also to the communication passage37 and flows through the inside space of the second rotary door 26 andis blown off from the defroster opening 20. Then, a part of air from theair mixing portion 19 is directly introduced into the side face openings21 b through the bypass passage 34 in the same way shown in FIG. 15.

[0164] In the second foot mode, because the center face opening 21 a istotally closed by the second rotary door 26, air blown from the centerface opening 21 a is stopped. Thus, it is possible to perform the secondfoot mode in which air is blown off from not only the foot opening 22but also the side face openings 21 b and the defroster opening 20. Withthis operation, it is possible to heat the passenger's feet and at thesame time, to prevent fogging of the front windshield and the sidewindshields of the vehicle. Further, it is also possible to prevent theportion adjacent to the side windshield of the passenger's upper halfbody from feeling cold when outside air temperature is low.

Other Embodiments

[0165] Although the present invention has been fully described inconnection with the preferred embodiments thereof with reference to theaccompanying drawings, it is to be noted that various changes andmodifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0166] For example, in the above-described respective embodiments, theouter peripheral door surfaces 25 e, 26 e, 26 e′ of the first and secondrotary doors 25, 26 are shaped like an arc having its center at therotary shafts 25 a, 25 n, 26 a, 26 b, respectively. However, even if theouter peripheral door surfaces 25 e, 26 e, 26 e′ are not shaped like anarc but are shaped like a flat plane, the sealing functions of therotary doors 25, 26 can be performed by the seal parts 25 h, 25 i, 26 h,26 i. Thus, the outer peripheral door surfaces 25 e, 26 e, 26 e′ can beformed into a flat shape.

[0167] Further, in the above-described first embodiment, thethermoplastic elastomer is used as the material of the seal parts 25 h,25 i, 26 h, 26 i of the rotary doors 25, 26. Further, when the outerperipheral door surfaces 25 e, 26 e, the side plates 25 c, 25 d, 26 c,26 d and the rotary shafts 25 a, 25 b, 26 a, 26 b, which construct thebase part of the rotary doors 25, 26, are molded of resin, the sealparts 25 h, 25 i, 26 h, 26 i are integrally molded with them. However,it is also recommended that packing members previously molded of foamingresin or the like be used as the seal parts 25 h, 25 i, 26 h, 26 i andmay be fixed to the peripheral portions of the base part of the rotarydoors 25, 26 with an adhesive or the like.

[0168] Still further, the example in which the air mixing door 14 isconstructed of the cantilever plate door has been described in theabove-described first embodiment. However, needless to say, the airmixing door 14 can be constructed of a sliding door or a flexible filmdoor that does not turn but moves back and forth.

[0169] Still further, in the above-described first embodiment, theexample in which both the evaporator 13 and the heater core 15 arearranged nearly in the horizontal direction has been described. However,the arrangement of the evaporator 13 and the heater core 15 is notlimited to the nearly horizontal arrangement but can be variouslymodified.

[0170] Such changes and modifications are to be understood as beingwithin the scope of the present invention as defined by the appendedclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An air conditioner for a vehicle having apassenger compartment, the air conditioner comprising: a heat exchangerfor performing a heat exchange with air; a case accommodating the heatexchanger, for defining an air passage through which air flows into thepassenger compartment, the case being provided with a defroster openingthrough which air flows toward an inner surface of a front windshield ofthe vehicle, a face opening through which air flows toward an upper sideof the passenger compartment, and a foot opening through which air flowstoward a lower side of the passenger compartment, at positionsdownstream from the heat exchanger; and a mode selecting device foropening and closing the defroster opening, the face opening and the footopening, the mode selecting device including first and second rotarydoors, wherein: each of the first and second rotary doors includes arotation shaft, an outer peripheral door surface separated from a centeraxial line of the rotation shaft to a radial outside by a predetermineddimension, and two side plates connected to the rotation shaft and endportions of the outer peripheral door surface in an axial direction ofthe rotation shaft; and one of the first and second rotary doors isdisposed to open and close one of the defroster opening, the faceopening and the foot opening, and the other one of the first and secondrotary doors is disposed to open and close the other two of thedefroster opening, the face opening and the foot opening.
 2. The airconditioner according to claim 1, wherein: each of the first and secondrotary doors is formed into a gate shape by the outer peripheral doorsurface and the two side plates to have an inner space of the gateshape, through which air after passing through the heat exchanger flows;the defroster opening, the face opening and the foot opening arearranged outside of the gate shapes of the first and second rotarydoors; each of the first and second rotary doors is provided with a sealportion on peripheral end portions of the outer peripheral door surfaceand the two side plates; the case has seal surfaces each of which isprovided around each of the openings; and the seal portionpress-contacts the seal surface of the case so that a communicationbetween the inner space of the gate shape and each of the openings isshut.
 3. The air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein: each of theside plates is formed substantially into a fan shape having a pivot; andthe rotation shaft is disposed to protrude outside of the side platesfrom the pivots of the side plates.
 4. The air conditioner according toclaim 2, wherein: the rotation shaft is constructed with two shaft partsdisposed at the pivots of the side plates and separated from each otherin the axial direction; and the shaft parts are disposed to protrudeoutside substantially in a direction perpendicular to the side plates.5. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the first andsecond rotary doors are disposed such that the outer peripheral doorsurface and the side plates of the second rotary door are arrangedinside of the outer peripheral door surface and the side plates of thefirst rotary door.
 6. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein:the first rotary door is disposed to open and close the foot opening;and the second rotary door is disposed to open and close the defrosteropening and the face opening.
 7. The air conditioner according to claim6, wherein: the case includes right and left side wall portions in avehicle width direction; and the foot opening is provided in both of theright and left side walls to opposite to the side plates of the firstrotary door.
 8. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein: thefirst rotary door is disposed to open and close the face opening; andthe second rotary door is disposed to open and close the defrosteropening and the foot opening.
 9. The air conditioner according to claim1, wherein: the heat exchanger includes a heating heat exchanger forheating air; the heating heat exchanger is disposed in the case to forma hot air passage through which air passes the heating heat exchanger,and a cold air passage through which air bypasses the heating heatexchanger; the foot opening is provided to be near the cold air passagethan the hot air passage; and the air passage of the case is providedwith a hot air bypass passage through which air in the hot air passageis branched into right and left sides of the cold air passage and isintroduced into the foot opening.
 10. The air conditioner according toclaim 1, wherein each of the first and second rotary doors are disposedin the case such that the side plates are arranged at right and leftside in a vehicle width direction.
 11. An air conditioner for a vehiclehaving a passenger compartment, the air conditioner comprising: a heatexchanger for performing a heat exchange with air; a case accommodatingthe heat exchanger, for defining an air passage through which air flowsinto the passenger compartment, the case being provided with a defrosteropening through which air flows toward an inner surface of a frontwindshield of the vehicle, a face opening through which air flows towardan upper side of the passenger compartment, and a foot opening throughwhich air flows toward a lower side of the passenger compartment, atpositions downstream from the heat exchanger; and a mode selectingdevice for opening and closing the defroster opening, the face openingand the foot opening, the mode selecting device including first andsecond rotary doors, wherein: each of the first and second rotary doorsincludes a rotation shaft, an outer peripheral door surface separatedfrom a center axial line of the rotation shaft to a radial outside by apredetermined dimension, and two side plates connected to the rotationshaft and end portions of the outer peripheral door surface in an axialdirection of the rotation shaft; the first rotary door is disposed toopen and close the foot opening, and the second rotary door is disposedto open and close the defroster opening and the face opening; the faceopening is partitioned into a center face opening portion through whichair is blown toward a center upper side of the passenger compartment ina width direction of the vehicle, and a side face opening portionthrough which air is blown toward a side upper side of the passengercompartment in the width direction; and the second rotary door isdisposed to maintain an open state of the side face opening portion evenwhile closing the center face opening portion.
 12. The air conditioneraccording to claim 11, wherein: the second rotary door includes a sealportion disposed for fully closing the center face opening portion at aportion corresponding to the center face opening portion, and an airamount adjustment member disposed for adjusting an air amount blown fromthe side face opening portion at a position corresponding to the sideface opening portion.
 13. The air conditioner according to claim 11,wherein: the second rotary door is disposed downstream of the firstrotary door in an air flow direction in the case; the first rotary dooris disposed to open and close the foot opening and a communication portthrough which air flows into an inner space of the second rotary door;and the air passage of the case is provided with a bypass passageportion through which an upstream portion of the first rotary doordirectly communicates with the side face opening portion.